Supplement Access Threatened in Puerto Rico

Health officials in Puerto Rico recently issued an administrative order imposing a number of new regulations and fees on island supplement manufacturers and retailers. The new regulatory scheme mirrors much of what is already submitted to the FDA to register supplements, so it is likely that the order is little more than a money grab. If allowed to stand, it could spread to other parts of the US.

Under the rules, companies must pay a $25 fee to register every variation of a supplement by size—a particularly ridiculous fee given the wide range of products some companies offer. This fee is in addition to other burdensome administrative requirements and other fees. The order also requires some testing procedures that go beyond what the FDA requires.

This order will likely produce a situation similar to California after the passage of Proposition 65—it will become so burdensome and difficult to do business in Puerto Rico that supplement companies will simply choose to close down their operations on the island. The policy also disproportionately effects smaller companies, which will find it much more difficult to comply with the host of new regulations. Small businesses, then, will be on the losing end—and so will consumers, who will lose access to quality products.

Congress has the power to stop this administrative order. Lawmakers are in the process of passing legislation on Puerto Rico’s sizeable debt. The House recently approved a bill that includes a provision to study the economic impacts of the order—but this isn’t enough.

The best chance of stopping this is to get language inserted into the Senate’s companion bill on Puerto Rico’s debt that explicitly strikes the administrative order.

Action Alert!Write to your senators and urge them to support the inclusion of language in the Senate bill to strike Puerto Rico’s administrative order on dietary supplements. Please send your message immediately.